U.S. offers $5 million for information leading to Joseph Kony, top associates

U.S. offers $5 million for information leading to Joseph Kony, top associates

(CNN) — The U.S. State Department is offering $5 million for information leading to the “arrest, transfer or conviction” of three top leaders of the Lord’s Resistance Army, the department announced Wednesday.

One of those leaders, Joseph Kony, was the focus of a massive social media campaign called “Kony 2012.”

Kony is wanted by the International Criminal Court at the Hague for war crimes and crimes against humanity, stemming in part from allegations that he conscripted children as soldiers and sex slaves in his army, which operates in parts of Uganda and other parts of central Africa.

A small number of U.S. special forces are advising and assisting regional military efforts authorized by the African Union, the State Department said. Some of those U.S. advisers have been operating in southeastern Central African Republic, according to the department.

The reward money is available through the Department of State Rewards Program Update and Technical Corrections Act, which U.S. President Barack Obama signed into law in January.